BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 2, 2025
Maine Yankee produced power from 1972 to 1996. It was shut down in August 1997 as no longer economically viable, with decommissioning completed in 2005. The cost of decommissioning was $700 million and 542 metric tons of high level waste is stored on site. Decommissioning costs are paid for by utility ratepayers. Since 1998, Maine Yankee Atomic Power Company, has been in litigation with the U.S. Department of Energy seeking monetary damages as a result of the DOE’s partial breach of its contractual obligations to take title and begin removing spent nuclear fuel. The cost of storing the waste is essentially paid by taxpayers. There is no end in sight. ~ Patrick Walsh, Belfast